Site Index

Faculty Senate Committees
Goals, 2004-05

1. ATHLETICS COMMITTEE
   
   
   1. Invite Ruth Darling, Director of Thornton Advising Center and Todd Diacon, NCAA Faculty Representative to speak to the Faculty Senate, Monday, October 18
   2. Provide feedback for the NCAA Re-certification report
   3. Participate in the NCAA Re-certification campus visit
   4. Review committee structure and make recommendations for changes
   5. Review status of intramural sports on campus
   6. Continue to monitor Thornton Advising Center academic support programs
      
      BUDGET COMMITTEE
      
      
      1. Make recommendation for improving the budget hearing process, including participation in hearings for system units with direct impact on UTK. Provid input on establishing standard policy for structure of hearings, information provided, and access to this information via the web.
      2. Conduct annual faculty salary survey
      3. Explore the option of an administrative salary survey
      4. Follow-up on the Living Wage Resolution passed by Senate previously.
      5. Review data from the Delaware Study to assess the academic budgets.
      6. Provide input on budgeting process outside of the formal hearing process through participation in the Executive Planning and Budget Committee representative (Chair)
      7. Examine the Summer School budget/process by which departments may schedule courses/instructors and the flow of revenue from this.
      8. Establish the policy for faculty input to budgeting and revenue flowing through the UT Foundation in conjunction with the Development and Alumni Relations Committee.
      9. Establish policy for budgeting issues related to the UT Research Foundation.
      10. Examine the auxiliary enterprise budget process and allocation of actual costs (F&A) to these, including Athletics.
      11. Examine the Volunteer Athletic Scholarship Fund and allocation of income to activities not related to student scholarships.
      12. Address the budgeting for post-tenure review/merit raises once the current round of reviews is completed in 03-04.
      13. Using data from the annual salary study, propose policies to increase salaries in all units which fall below 90% of THEC peers.
      
      
      EDUCATIONAL POLICY COMMITTEE
      
      The goal of the Educational Policy Committee this year is to re-examine its role as a Senate Committee in light of faculty-run UG and Graduate Councils (both of which have Academic Policy Committees). There does not appear to be a unique and critical mission of the Educational Policy Committee under the current structure of the Faculty Senate and UG and Grad Councils. If we are unable to identify such a mission, we should consider recommending changes to the by-laws that would eliminate Ed Policy as a standing committee.
      
      FACULTY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
      
      
      1. Susan Hamilton, Basil Antar, Muammer Cetingok, will work on the Manual for Faculty Evaluation. Their effort will build on preliminary work done by the Joan Heminway of the 2003-04 Faculty Affairs Committee. They agreed to begin this effort by email in preparation for the next committee meeting. It is understood that the committee?s work on the manual will be done in concert with the Office of the Chancellor.
         
         
      2. Beauvais Lyons, Peter Hoeyng, Bart Rohrbach and Bill Dunne will develop a document to assist colleges and departments bring their bylaws into compliance with the new Faculty Handbook. This document will outline references to department and college bylaws from every chapter for the new handbook. Beauvais indicated that he is working with Anne Mayhew and the General Counsel?s Office to obtain an electronic version of the most recent draft of the handbook. Using an electronic version, this document can be initially compiled using the "find" function. It is understood that the committee's work on the manual will be done in concert with the Office of the Chancellor.
         
         
      3. Jennifer Beals and Brian Edwards will examine the Partner (Spousal) Hiring position paper authored by Beauvais Lyons, and distributed to the committee with the August 1st memo. Everyone agree that if a policy were developed, it would need to allow for extensive flexibility. Most members of the committee felt that having the conversation about a partner Hiring Policy would be useful, as we have a history of this practice as an institution. Beauvais indicated that discussion of the topic could inform the new UT Diversity Plan.
         
         
      FACULTY & STAFF BENEFITS COMMITTEE
      
      
      1. Request by retiree to persuade legislature to "loosen restrictions on our TIAA-CREF monies" so that retirees drawing TIAA but wanting to withdraw CREF funds for other investment may do so.
      2. UTIA Advisory Council question regarding fairness of salary offset for Federal retirees re-hired at UT (UT Policy #120) Issue of parity and double jeopardy.
      3. Graduate assistant insurance subsidy (from Graduate Student Association) Students must be on UT payroll to receive; also general level of insurance for graduate student employees.
      4. Issue from retiree -- problems with insurance premium auto draft deduction.
      5. Partner benefits-the University has included sexual orientation as part of the protected status in the new faculty handbook. The UT Senate would like this committee to continue reviewing the process of adding domestic partnership benefits. Currently 360 colleges and universities nationwide offer some form of domestic partnership benefits (source: AAUP).
      6. Spousal Hiring Policy (collaboration with Faculty Affairs Committee).
      7. Possibility of co-sponsoring informational meetings on benefits (co-sponsors may include UT Retirement Services, UT Human Resources, UT Exempt Staff Committee, UT Federal Credit Union, etc.)
         
         
      GRADUATE COUNCIL
      
      INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE
      
      
      1. To continue work on the development of a document that addresses privacy issues within the context of our current Acceptable Use Policy (this is currently stalled in the General Counsel's office).
      2. To work with the Innovative Technologies Center to identify Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technologies for meetings and teaching and learning environments.
      3. To participate in an evaluation of the Napster/SONY trial for music services for dormitory students.
      4. To work with the Research Council to review issues and communication protocols regarding the Faculty Refresh Program.
      5. To consider the development of various IT benchmarks that might enable us to assess progress in a variety of IT arenas. This will become a part of the Knoxville Area IT Steering Committee work on strategic planning.
      6. To develop a statement of faculty interests and priorities in IT needs.
      7. To address administrative issues: development of the ITComm web site and Blackboard site with documents relevant to IT areas; development of minutes, agendas, and the like.
         
         
      LIBRARY COMMITTEE
      
      
      1. Advocate adequate resources to ensure appropriate access to scholarship and current issues needed by students and faculty; work on Capital Campaign;
         
      2. Work on issues related to intellectual freedom regarding scholarly pursuits and scholarly content (patriot's Act and Implications of privacy threats);
         
      3. Help library advance services through follow-up on the 2004 library quality survey results;
         
      4. Explore Studio Services; space issues.
      
      
      NOMINATING COMMITTEE
      
      PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
      
      
      1. As a follow-up on the committee's previous findings on faculty mentoring of probationary faculty, it is proposed that workshops be held to train faculty mentors who will, in turn, help faculty attain research and teaching excellence.
      2. In order for UT to move toward AAU membership, UT must have more faculty achieve the following faculty awards and fellowships:
         Alexander von Humbolt Fellowships
         American Academy in Rome
         American Academy of Arts and Sciences
         American Antiquarian Society Fellowships
         American Council of Learned Societies Fellowships
         American Philosophical Society
         American School of Classical Studies in Athens Fellowships
         Field Medal
         Folger Library Postdoctoral Fellowships
         Ford Foundation Fellowships
         Fulbright Awards
         Hunnington Library Research Fellowships
         John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellowships
         MacArthur Awards
         National Academy of Education
         National Endowment for Humanities Fellowships
         Newberry Library Fellowships
         Nobel Prize
         Packard Fellowships
         Residency at the Center for Advanced Studies in the Visual Arts
         Residency at the Getty Center for Arts and Humanities
         Residency at the Institute for Advanced Study
         Residency at the National Humanities Center
         Residency at the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars
         Rockefeller Fellowships
         Searle Scholars
         Sloan Fellowships
         Information about these faculty awards and fellowships will be placed on the university website to assist faculty.
         
      3. Develop a Returning Scholars Seminar Series in which faculty who have already attained Scholar status (Rhodes, Fulbright, etc.) will share their experiences with aspiring UT faculty.
         
         
      RESEARCH COUNCIL
      
      
      1. focus on methods of assessment of faculty scholarly activity and research productivity that are based on more than total federal dollars produced.
         
      2. focus on research promotion and outreach with the goal of reaching citizens of tennessee.
         
      3. focus on exploring and facilitating interdisciplinary research, cross-campus, and inter-institution research; look also at the potential institutional resistance.
         
      4. provide formal and informal feedback to the office of research with the goal of enhancing o.r. service to the faculty.
         
      5. lobby for active humanities and social science support by the office of research in both grant preparation and outreach.
         
      6. foster ut compliance with omb and other national regulations and initiatives such as safety and irb.
         
      7. continue to support iris enhancement by providing feedback from the faculty with the goal of facilitating enhanced services. pursue a similar course of action with respect to coeus.
         
      8. explore possibilities for increasing total sarif dollars and also explore access to sarif dollars for other than tenured and tenure-track faculty.
         
      9. continue to focus on tangible research product and research data policies.
         
      10. coordinate with the research foundation in order to identify common goals.
          
      11. lobby for resumption of a predictable faculty computer refresh program.
          
      12. illuminate faculty needs which result from federal circular a21. lobby for alternative support mechanisms.
          
      13. lobby for uniform policy for f&a funds distribution across colleges and departments within colleges.
          
      14. encourage o.r. support for proposal development with the goal to increase the fraction of the faculty with funded research and scholarly activities. lobby for establishment of incentives to encourage faculty to address this goal.
          
      
      
      STUDENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

      The primary goal of the 2004-2005 Faculty Senate Student Affairs Committee is to examine and recommend ways for improving the communication/interaction between the students and faculty of The University of Tennessee as it relates to the charge of this committee. As stated in the Faculty Handbook: "This committee shall concern itself with student life, rights, privileges, and responsibilities; and with social disciplinary matters, student government, and organizations. It shall make recommendations to the Faculty Senate on these matters."

      TEACHING COUNCIL
      
      
      1. The Teaching Council will submit to the Faculty Senate its recommendation on implementing the conversion of the paper-based SAIS to an online-based system.
         
      2. The Teaching Council will solicit nominations and determine recipients of the Chancellor's Excellence in Teaching and Advising Awards.
         
      
      
      UNDERGRADUATE COUNCIL
      
      
      1. Continue implementation of the General Education curriculum.
      2. Support efforts to develop and implement the Quality Enhancement Plan related to International and Intercultural Awareness.
      3. Increase communication with the faculty regarding the role and function of the Undergraduate Council.
      4. Collaborate as appropriate with other Faculty Senate committees and University committees to support Undergraduate Education.
         
         
      
      
      

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